Life and Death
by Adrian Tyndall
Summary: After Kuyou's defeat, our heroes restore the barrier separating monsters and humans, supposedly making it infallible. However, this creates more problems than they realized. The events set in motion could have dire consequences on Saren and Mizore, and they have to strike a delicate balance between life and death. Rated M for Language and Violence. Continuation of Ice and Snow.
1. Chapter 1

**[1]**

There were plenty of decorations in the small, one-room apartment. Pictures of friends, trophies, newspaper clippings, or sometimes whole newspapers. Most of the pictures were of her friends, taken during their time together in school. Pictures from a ski resort, or from various tourist castles in the human world.

None of these decorations, though, were as prominently placed as the single, black feather. It lay by itself on the desk against the wall. The blue-haired girl looked it in an almost contemplative manner, uncertain what to make of it. _I recognize it… I know who it belongs to. But why did I find it there…? Was he trying to reach me? What does he want?_ She frowned as she began to recall the events of that night.

_They stood in the same park where, just a few days before, Saren's father had summoned Origin and recreated the barrier now keeping this world safe. The night was quiet, with stars partially obscured by clouds. Saren had noted it'd be better to make the journey at night because of the lack of passersby._

_The human world had largely been vacated of monsters, with the heads of several monster clans summoning their kin home to discuss punishment for this blatant violation of the human world. The humans had begun to rebuild their homes, choosing to believe that a natural disaster had claimed so many of their homes and jobs, rather than admit the existence of monsters. "So for once, their ignorance works in our favor," Ruby had said. "For now, at least. I'm sure it will become more difficult in the long run, once the monsters decide the time is right for reveal ourselves to humanity. There will be a lot of hard feelings to sort through."_

"_Will you all be alright?" Saren asked, frowning._

"_We'll manage," Kurumu said. "None of us are in trouble, after all. I'm pretty sure we'll be fine. You two need to get going, though, or you'll be in trouble."_

_Mizore turned back to face her friends and smiled at them. "I'm going to miss you all," she said._

"_We'll miss you too, Mizore," Ruby said. "We'll see you in a couple of decades, though. Now get going."_

"_Don't forget about us," Yukari said. "We'll all be seeing you in the future."_

_Kurumu walked up to Mizore and wrapped the snow fairy up in a hug. "Take care of yourself, Mizore. I hope for the best for you both," she said quietly._

_The succubus retreated, but stopped when she saw something on the ground. A single black feather had caught her eye, one that she'd seen a few days before. She picked it up, holding it close to her as her best friend vanished, going off to spend the rest of her life with the man she'd chosen to be her one and only._

Kurumu sighed as the memory of that night came back to her. She was beginning to know how Mizore had felt all those months ago when she thought her friends had abandoned her. Ruby and Yukari had gone back to the monster world, accepting full-time teaching jobs at Youkai Academy. Gin and San were still working to restore order to the monsters who had crept into the human realm. Tsukune had gone back to Moka. And Mizore was in the future, finally starting on her dream, as far as anyone knew.

Which left Kurumu here, on her own in a one-bedroom apartment that seemed to large for her anyway. Still, there wasn't much she could do, and she'd never seen the use in whining about her misfortunes. She was still alive, which meant she had an advantage over many others. But in being alive, she knew she still had a mission to complete. She had to find her destined one, and fall in love, for that was how she would continue to live.

She looked down at the feather one more time, trying to contemplate its meaning, but could come up with nothing. Sighing, she rose and got ready to leave. Unfortunately, she still had a job, because she had to pay for this apartment somehow.

x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x

He floated in the silent night, held aloft by black angelic wings. He watched the blue-haired girl quietly, uncertain of what to do should she turn and look his way. It held a sort of thrill for him, knowing her power and what she was capable of, and yet he refused to move. He had to admit that he was fascinated by her. She'd been the only one able to see through his illusion. He wanted to know more about her but…

But he was afraid. There was nothing else for it. They'd met under the worst possible of circumstances. He was certain she'd never be able to forgive him, or if she did, then she'd certainly never be able to trust him. He had tried to take her life, and in retrospect, it seemed rather selfish.

Fortunately, his decision, incorrect or not, had come to nothing. Kuyou was dead, and so their bargain was nullified. No longer did he have to fear retribution for not completing his job. No longer did he have to look over his shoulder.

And no longer did he have hope for ridding himself of his cursed immortality. He resisted the urge to punch the wall of her apartment, lest she discover his presence prematurely.

He watched as she left the apartment, going off to wherever, and slowly floated away from her, his jet black wings flapping once to propel him skyward. He soared over the district of the city, letting his mind wander far from the mortals down below. Their capacity to rebuild was astonishing. Their resolve was remarkable. In several thousand years, he'd never known people to come together like they were now.

He settled down on one of his favorite places, a radio tower in the center of the district. He folded his wings around him, managing to cloak himself effectively. He sighed quietly as he let his thoughts wonder back to two weeks before, when he'd first met the beautiful blue-haired girl he'd been paid to kill. _Even without her charm as a succubus, I'm sure I'd have been attracted to her_, he thought. _She was so earnest in her desire to protect her friends and save this planet._ And protect them she had. She'd managed to put up enough of a fight to keep him at bay until… Well, until he lost consciousness.

He'd awakened later, to a large headache and an empty chamber that was quickly collapsing. He'd made his escape, secretly hoping the girl had made it to safety as well. Then, the night of the strange disturbance, he'd found her again, hiding her tears as her best friend entered that swirling vortex, never to be seen again. The snow fairy and her mysterious suitor had gone far away, having managed to save their friends and their world. And now that his failure was so thoroughly completed, he was glad Kuyou had died. He couldn't believe he'd sold himself for so low a price. He was ashamed, more than anything.

Sighing, he said to himself, "Never again. Never again will I, Castiel, the holder of History, become someone else's pawn. Never again will I forget who I am, who I have been for millennia. It is time to break the cycle."


	2. Chapter 2

**[2]**

A pair of blue eyes snapped open, surveying the darkness surrounding them. There was little in evidence, save for a rather plain ceiling. Despite that, they kept looking, searching, almost frantically. There was an odd noise that didn't fit, a sound of pulsating wind.

Truthfully, there were two sounds. The odd, pulsating wind was one; a light, gentle breathing was the other. The eyes looked for the source of the latter sound, and locked onto a sleeping form, a young woman with purple hair past her shoulder and skin almost as white as freshly fallen snow. Once the eyes found her laying there, the pulsating wind slowed and quieted. An arm reached out, snaking its way around the girl's midsection.

The sudden move caused the light breathing to stop. The girl rolled over to face him. "Saren… is everything alright?" she asked, her eyes, a gradient mixture of blue and purple, locking with his. Concern flooded them, as well as being evident in her soft, sweet voice.

Saren gave a small sigh of relief and nodded. "Yes, Mizore. I'm fine," he said. "Just a dream."

"Want to talk about it?" she asked.

He frowned, mulling it over in his head. Finally, he said, "No, it's alright. It's nothing to worry about." He kissed her forehead; feeling her cold skin on his lips reassured him. She snuggled closer to him, despite the heat his body generated, and laid her head against his chest.

After a few moments, she looked up at him again, frowning. "Saren, talk to me. Something's bothering you," she said.

"What makes you say that?" the half-elf asked.

"You're still wide awake and your heart is racing," Mizore answered.

Saren offered her a weak smile, though she probably couldn't see it in the darkness. "Since when did you start learning what my sleeping patterns are?" he asked.

"About the time you decided to take on a mountain troll and ended up with cracked ribs, and almost broke your arm," she answered. Her cool fingers brushed across the arm in question, and Saren felt his flesh crawl. "Besides, just because I could never stalk you doesn't mean I don't watch you."

The half-elf smiled. "I thought you'd given up trying to stalk people?" he asked.

Mizore shrugged. "I did, but only after that night in Flanoir," she said. "Besides, you never exactly made it easy. You pay too much attention to me. So, I decided to start paying more attention to you."

"Not that you have to," Saren said.

"Of course I do," Mizore said. "Someone has to keep you from hurting yourself." She ran her fingertips across the scar on his chest, the one _she'd_ given him, and frowned. _Not that I did you any favors there either,_ she thought.

"Stop it," he said, frowning. "That wasn't your fault, remember? You weren't in control."

_What are you, a mind-reader now?_ Mizore thought, laying her hand flat on his chest. "I can't help it," she said. "That memory still haunts me. You got hurt, almost killed, because of me."

"Yes, I know. But it was a sacrifice I was willing to make to get you back. If I have to, I'll make it again," the half-elf replied. Maybe he said it more harshly than he intended; he felt Mizore lift her head to try to look at him in the darkness.

She studied his silhouetted face for a few moments, barely registering that his heart was pounding again. "I know, Saren. I'm sorry I brought it up again…

The half-elf took a deep breath, releasing it as a slow sigh. "No, it's okay," he said. "I'm just still on edge, I guess."

"How long have you been losing sleep over this dream?" Mizore asked, hoping she could get him to talk about it.

He frowned, knowing what she was after. "Not that long," he said. "I don't generally have repeated dreams. Maybe two or three days."

Mizore rolled her eyes. "It's been longer than that, and you know it," she said. "I'm sure you remember what you had for breakfast a month ago, not to mention every dream you've had since then."

Saren offered up a small smile. "You're right of course. But I promise, it's nothing to worry about. I'll be fine."

Mizore sighed, knowing that this was the best she was likely to get. She planted a kiss on his shoulder and snuggled against him. "Alright," she said softly. _You win this round,_ she added silently. Despite his attempts to comfort her, she was still worried. As was often the case with Saren, the most important things were those he wasn't saying.

x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x

Kurumu sighed as she punched the time clock, releasing herself from another night of work. She tossed a generic "bye" over her shoulder before walking out the door, the night wind cool against her face. It was somewhat refreshing, yet at the same time, she couldn't enjoy it. This time of night, the city was dangerous, with drunks being the only people in evidence. Normally, it wouldn't be a problem, but she refused to use her powers in the human world.

She drew her arms tight around herself and walked back toward her apartment, forcing herself to ignore the people around her. Nonetheless, she felt the leers on her, the perverted men in the crowd following her every move. Part of her wanted to blame the outfit she wore; her work uniform was less than flattering. She knew, though, that the cause was her power as a succubus, the native charm they had to attract men.

_None of them will ever be good enough for me, though. I wanted my one and only, but he's long gone. I doubt I'll ever find anyone like him. _She sighed, wondering what she was going to do. If she didn't find someone soon…

"Hey… hey, babe. You look like you could use some company…" a voice behind her said. It wasn't slurred, like many of the other drunks out this late, but she suspected it wasn't entirely human either. Almost at once, she was overcome with a strange scent, and spun, trying to determine who was behind her. The motion was more difficult than she'd planned, and she ended up slipping and falling.

_What the… slime?_ Kurumu thought wildly, looking around where she'd fallen. _This is… from a slug?_ "Where are you?"

The leaves rustled as a figure approached. "Kurumu…" it said, in a raspy voice. "It's been a long time… I'm sure you don't remember me, do you…?"

"No, I don't think I do," the succubus answered. "Your voice sounds familiar, but…"

"I'm disappointed. This is the second time… the second time you've forgotten me," he said. "My name is N-"

"Nagare Kano," Kurumu said, narrowing her eyes. "I do remember you. You almost got me kicked out of the newspaper club. You almost cost me all my friends."

"That's right. And then they saved you… That brat Tsukune, and the bitch Moka…" Nagare said. "I hate you all… I've been looking for you for years, hoping to take revenge… Then when the barrier came down, I came over with all the monsters aching to kill some humans…"

"Then why didn't you go back with the others?" she asked. "You were all supposed to be driven back."

"You're one to talk. You're walking proudly on the streets…" Nagare snapped back. "You're more of a monster than I am."

"Because I fought to save everyone," Kurumu said. "I never wanted to kill. I never wanted to hurt anyone."

"Neither did I… but then you all turned on me… and now I want my vengeance. And I'll have it…" Nagare said. As he spoke, his body began to elongate, stretching toward her.

The succubus tried to move, but the slime she'd slipped on was holding her in place. She watched in horror, struggling to escape as Nagare's slug body crept closer to her, threatening to wrap around her. _No…! How could I be so careless as to let myself be caught by him…?_ She shuddered as his body began to wrap around her, part of it covering her mouth and nose. She knew he was preparing to release poison gasses, but couldn't cough to free herself from it. _Tsukune…! Someone… help me…_


	3. Chapter 3

**[3]**

Mizore awoke with a start, not recognizing at first why she'd done so. It took her a moment to collect herself. She was still in Saren's room, in his parents' house. _In the future_, she reminded herself. So why did she have a dream about the past?

Yet there was no denying that she had. She had been dreaming about Kurumu, her best friend. The succubus had been in danger, was being suffocated by... something. Mizore didn't recognize it.

She looked over at Saren's side of the bed, but the half-elf was nowhere to be found. _Something must be bothering him, too,_ she thought. They'd already woken once in the night because of his dream, and now she'd had one as well. _There's got to be more to this,_ she thought, frowning.

The snow fairy climbed out of bed and dressed herself for the day, then left Saren's room. As she closed the door, she took a deep breath, trying to determine what Makoto was cooking. Saren's mother had a habit of cooking rather complex meals, even if no else was around to enjoy them. Since Mizore had come to the future, though, she'd been teaching her how to make some of them.

Mizore entered the kitchen to find Makoto just pulling a cake from the oven. "That smells delicious," she said.

Makoto jumped slightly, but recovered quickly, keeping a firm grip on the cake. "Mizore! Good morning. I didn't even know you were up."

"Old habits die hard, I guess," the snow fairy said. "I can still never seem to sneak up on Saren, though. Have you seen him this morning?"

Makoto shook her head. "He got up and left about an hour before I started on these cakes. He might have gone to talk to Adrian about something," she said. "Why, is something wrong?"

Mizore frowned. "Not really... At least, I'm not sure..." she said. "See, I had this dream earlier about one of my friends, Kurumu."

"Oh, I remember her," Makoto said. "The one with the blue hair. The succubus, right?"

"Right. Well, I had a dream she was being attacked," the snow fairy replied. "Someone had attacked her, and was killing her when I woke up."

Makoto's eyes widened. "That sounds serious. I'm guessing you want to go check up on her?" she asked.

"I'd like to," Mizore said. "But... I don't know... Saren mentioned that too much time travel might have bad side-effects..."

Makoto frowned. It was true that coming in contact with the Gates of Time too often could be harmful; it seemed the only person immune to that particular curse was Setsuna. Not that any of them really understood how; despite all their years together, there was still much about the gatekeeper that none of them knew. "Hmm... That is true... There might be another way, though," she said.

"You think so?" the snow fairy asked.

"Sure. We can look up your friends using the palace archive," Makoto said. "They should be listed in there."

"That sounds good," Mizore said. "Can we get started when you finish baking?"

"Of course," Makoto answered. "In the meantime, want to give me a hand? We should be able to have this finished by the time everyone else gets home."

Mizore smiled and crept into the kitchen to help the older woman, trying not to think too much about the dream she'd had...

x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x

Kurumu gasped for air as the slug's body released her from its grip. She managed to look up at the man who'd tried taking her captive, and saw that he was on the ground, another man standing in front of him. "It can't be..." she muttered.

"Hey, pal. You oughta know by now it ain't right to rough up a lady," the man said, his voice easily recognizable to Kurumu. "Wait a sec... haven't we dealt with you before? You're that slug monster, ain'tcha?"

"My... my name is Nagare Kano..." the slug said. "And you... you're one of her friends, aren't you? This is great... I can dispose of two of you at once."

"Shut up," the man said, kicking Nagare in the stomach. "You ain't takin' care of a damn thing layin' on your belly."

"G-Gin..." Kurumu said, struggling to her feet. "You came for me?"

"Oh, Kurumu," Gin said, tossing a casual smirk back to her. "Yeah, I was headin' out for a drink, and saw you were in a bit of trouble. You sure know how to pick 'em, don't ya?"

"It wasn't my fault," the succubus snapped. "He caught me off guard!"

"Eh, it's fine, chill out," Gin said. Turning back on Nagare, he said, "Now you, you're gonna leave her the hell alone from now on, right? Otherwise I won't be so nice next time."

"Er... right..." Nagare muttered. The slug monster began crawling away on his hands and knees, eventually disappearing from sight.

"Now that that's settled," Gin said, "what's up? How've you been, Kurumu?"

"Alright, I suppose," the succubus replied. "Thank you for helping me, by the way."

"It's no biggie," the werewolf said. "I never liked that Nagare character anyway. What was he on about this time?"

Kurumu sighed. "He wanted revenge for what happened to him back at Youkai Academy. Some people just can't let things go," she said.

"Guess you're right," Gin replied, shrugging. "Anyway, need an escort home? Kinda dangerous out here this late at night."

Kurumu smiled. "Gin, you're almost a gentleman right now."

"Yeah, well, don't get too used to it," the werewolf said, smirking. "You know me too well. Anyway, if you're sure about the escort home thing, then I'll catch ya later."

"Alright," Kurumu said. As her friend sauntered away toward the city, she turned and cast another look at him, smiling before turning to head back to her own apartment.


	4. Chapter 4

**[4]**

"Personally, I think you're over-thinking this whole thing," she said, frowning.

They were sitting outside a cafe, waiting on lunch. Both had brown hair, both were blue-eyed. Aside from that, Saren didn't see anything to mark them as siblings. Still, the prince had to admit Kira might actually have a point.

"You over-analyze everything," Kira continued, taking a sip of coffee. "I've told you that for years. Not that it's necessarily a problem; you often see things the rest of us miss. What I'm saying is... Look, you fought for this girl, right? Almost killed yourself how many times in the process? And then you took a huge risk and brought her to the future. Why doubt any of that now?"

Saren frowned. "I'm not doubting the relationship itself," he objected. "I'm doubting my ability to keep her safe. If this pans out the way I saw it..."

"...which you have no guarantee that it will," Kira said, interrupting him. "You said yourself that the dream changed every night. How do you know what is going to be the end result?"

The prince sighed. "I guess I don't," he admitted. "The simple truth is that what I'm feeling right now is fear. Honest, genuine fear."

Kira smiled, and Saren expected her to start teasing him. Instead, she said, "That's natural. How many times do you think daddy felt fear over what might happen to mom?"

"To hear her side of it, dozens," Saren said.

"Exactly," Kira replied. "But he never let it paralyze him. He just fought to make sure he didn't disappoint her or let anything happen to her. And I don't need to tell you how that worked out."

Saren snorted in amusement. "No, I can figure that one out on my own, thanks," he said. "It's still not easy, though. I can't tell you how many times I've second-guessed myself where she's concerned."

"I know, it's been a lot. I'd do the same thing if I'd been in your position," Kira said. "But it was a decision involving both of you, and both of you made the choice. That has to account for something. It means she knew the risks too."

"I know," Saren said.

"Then what's the problem?" Kira asked. "You love this girl. You want to be with her. You want to marry her. So fight for her.

"And Saren, I want you to remember something," the brown-haired girl added, standing up. "We might not agree on everything, particularly where Mizore is concerned. But you're my big brother, and I love you."

Saren rewarded his sister with a rare smile. "I love you too," he said. "Even if you are a brat."

Kira grinned, replying, "I am the younger sibling. It's my job."

x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x

As he opened the door to his parents' house, Saren almost collided with Mizore, who had been holding a cake in one hand, trying to open the door herself with the other. She quickly recovered, getting her free hand on the cake to prevent dropping it. The snow fairy looked up at him in surprise and smiled. "Saren! I was worried about you," she said. "Everything alright?"

"Yeah, it's fine. I went out for a walk, and then had lunch with Kira," he said. "I take it mom conscripted you into baking?"

"Actually, I volunteered," Mizore said. "I've wanted to learn to cook for years. Your mother is a better teacher than anyone at Youkai Academy ever was."

"Is that Saren?" Makoto called from the kitchen. She came into view, carrying a pair of cake pans on her own, and added, "Good, you're home. Everything alright?"

"Yes, mother. Everything's fine. I just had lunch with Kira," Saren answered. "She's going to do whatever errand you asked her to now."

"That's good," Makoto said. "There are two more cakes in there. Can you get them, please?"

"Yeah, mom," the half-elf answered. "Remind me again why we need five cakes?"

"Tomorrow is Neo-Queen Serenity's birthday, and the anniversary of her coronation," Makoto said. "We have to feed quite a few people."

"Right, I forgot," Saren said. _That means everyone is going to be there. Even Setsuna... Shit._

"Don't forget, you still need to take Mizore to get something to wear," Makoto called out.

"I know," Saren replied, carrying the cakes to the front door. "Is Rei still at the Hikawa Shrine, or is she back in her own shop?"

"I think she's still at the shrine," Makoto said. "Help me load these into the car so I can get them to the palace, please?"

"Sure, mom," Saren said. He followed his mother out to the car, Mizore hot on his heels, and they loaded the cakes carefully into the back of the car. "Are you going to need help unloading them there?"

"Hmm? Oh, no, I'll be fine," Makoto said. "Minako's supposed to be there waiting for me anyway. I'll get her to help. You two go on to the Shrine. I'll see you guys for dinner!"

She drove away carefully, leaving Saren and Mizore standing in the street outside the house. The half-elf shrugged, and said, "Guess she's excited about seeing all her friends."

"Yeah..." Mizore said, frowning.

"What's wrong, Mizore?" he asked, reaching for her hand.

"It's... It's nothing, Saren. Just a dream I had," she answered.

The half-elf frowned. "Want to talk to me about it?" he asked.

"It was nothing. I just had a dream about Kurumu," Mizore said. "Your mom said it's probably nothing to worry about. Just homesickness or something."

"I'm sorry, Mizore," he said, wrapping an arm around her. "Maybe we can talk to dad and see if there's some way we can track down your friends."

Mizore shook her head. "No, it's nothing to worry about, love. I promise," she said. Giving him a smile, she added, "Come on, let's go see this friend of your mom's. When we get home, I'll help your mom cook something delicious for you."

Saren returned her smile and nodded, locking up the house and heading with her down the street. When she looked away, though, keeping her eyes on the path, his expression fell, and once again he wondered if they'd made the right choice.


	5. Chapter 5

**[5]**

Kurumu lay back in her bed, her arm resting over her forehead. The blue-haired girl sighed, trying to force herself to relax. Things had become entirely too hectic lately. Nagare Kano's reappearance and attempt to kill her, Gin saving her, the mystery of that black feather... and she was supposed to be balancing all of this with her struggle to live a normal human life.

The succubus rolled onto her side, her mind beginning to wander. She thought about the brush with death she'd had, and how she'd been saved by Gin. That puzzled her as much as anything else; the werewolf was supposed to be off with San, his longtime friend and more recently girlfriend, convincing the remaining monsters to return to their realm instead of continuing their assault on the humans.

_Something must have happened between them_, she thought. _That really sucks. _As much as the werewolf got on her nerves, she'd never wanted anything but the best for any of her friends, which included him.

Kurumu frowned. When had she lost touch with her friends? Usually she was good about reading them, but from what she'd seen of Gin, she'd been able to detect no emotion. He'd worn his normal mask of nonchalance, but it had shifted when she'd mentioned San's name. It was slight, it was subtle, and it was quickly replaced, but it _had_ shifted.

_The question is_, she thought, _into what?_ She had no real way to know, which made her feel bad. It had been so long since she'd been close to everyone that she could no longer tell how they felt. _Especially Mizore. I'll have to want another twenty-five years before I know how she is._

As happy as she was for her best friend, she also resented the snow fairy, just a little. To meet someone out of the blue, fall in love with him, have him fight that hard for her... It was something Kurumu had always dreamed of, especially when she'd met Tsukune. He, of course, had chosen Moka, but Kurumu never gave up. Then Saren came around, and it seemed it was Mizore's turn.

Granted, it hadn't been easy, even if they did confess all sooner than Tsukune and Moka had. Kurumu remembered when she'd first realized there was something between them. Mizore's village had been razed, her parents murdered. She'd flown into a blind, grief-stricken rage, coming close to destroying herself. Saren had pleaded with her to stop until he couldn't speak. Mizore asked him why, and in that moment, Kurumu had felt the spark from Saren. Unable to tell her, he risked his life to save hers, the only way he had to show her.

That was when Kurumu knew she was out of the running. Out of the running for a race she'd never truly entered. There was no denying that she'd been intrigued by Saren, and maybe attracted to him on a more primal level. But she'd been telling the truth when she said he wasn't her type. So why did she feel so jealous?

_It's because everyone else found somebody_, Kurumu realized. Tsukune and Moka had pretty much always had one another. They'd both met their first day at Youkai Academy, and had been inseparable since. It had looked for a brief moment like Ruby and Gin might be together, but then they met San. The two of them seemed like a sure thing, especially once Fairy Tale had been defeated. They'd even been together recently, when Saren had helped them take down Kuyou.

_But even that had to fall apart. And because I've been so busy, I have no idea why. I haven't spent nearly enough time with my friends. I'm starting to know how Mizore felt before,_ Kurumu thought. _Well, it's time for that to change, starting now._

x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x

"This place looks like it hasn't changed in years," Mizore said, smiling. They looked up at the Hikawa Shrine from the street, and the snow fairy marveled at its beauty. "It's like we only saw it a few days ago."

Saren suppressed the urge to smirk. "Well, from your standpoint, we did only see it days ago. Months, anyway. But in reality, the shrine has not changed in a quarter century."

"It looks just as beautiful as the day we... well, crashed your parents' wedding," Mizore replied, amused.

The half-elf shook his head. "Let's... not mention that while we're here, shall we?" he asked, grinning. He led the snow fairy up the long flight of stairs until the shrine itself was in sight.

They found Rei meditating in the temple, which didn't seem to surprise Saren. He laid a hand gently on Mizore's shoulder, stopping her from going in to disturb the priestess. "It's always impressed me how dedicated she can be to her meditation and spiritual training," Saren remarked quietly, leading her away to one of the shrine's gardens.

"I know plenty of people who couldn't bear to sit still that long," Mizore answered. "I don't think I'd mind it, but it would get boring after awhile. Especially if I wasn't watching anything." _Or anyone_, she thought with a smirk.

"I will admit that sitting in one place is a little boring," Saren said. "But Rei's meditation teachings are very useful. She was the one who helped me learn to harness my healing techniques."

"Oh, I see," Mizore said. "That is pretty useful, then."

"It didn't take much work. Saren's a natural," a woman's voice said from behind them. The two turned to find Rei standing behind them, smiling.

"Oh, Rei," Saren said. "We didn't mean to disturb you."

"You're not disturbing me," Rei said. "I was almost done anyway, and I sensed your approach. The agitation rolling off the two of you is almost palpable."

Saren frowned, while Mizore simply blushed. "Err... I'm sorry," the snow fairy said. "It's just... I'm still getting used to this time and all."

"Oh, it's fine," Rei said. "You must be Mizore, right? The one who helped Saren crash the wedding?"

Mizore's blush deepened as Saren pressed his hand over his eyes. "Y-yes..." Mizore said sheepishly. "Umm... Mrs. Tyndall sent us here. I was supposed to have a dress made for tomorrow."

"Oh, that's right," Rei said. "Relax, and come with me. It'll only take a few minutes to get a good look at you and take your measurements. Then I'll be able to work on your dress. It won't take that long, and I know you'll love it."

"Should I just wait out here, then?" Saren asked.

"You're probably better off doing something else for awhile," Rei said, smiling. "Don't worry, I'll take care of her. I'll call you when we're done."

Mizore reached down and squeezed Saren's hand gently, and said, "I'll see you later, Saren." She walked away with the temple priestess, leaving Saren standing in a garden that, ironically, was supposed to have a calming effect.


End file.
